Carpet-sweeper



(No Model.) 2 sheets-sheet 1. 4

C. B. CLARK.

CARPET SWEBPER.

No. 247,309. Pm; med 20,1881.

'L I '77 'i (No Mogel.) 2 sheets-sheet 2. C. B. CLARK.

CARPET SWEEPER. No. 247,309. Patented Sept. 20,1881.

N. Pinzas mowuummpnm. www.; c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES B. CLARK, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

CARPET-SWEEPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 247,309, dated September 20, 1881.

Application filed January 25, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern Beit known that I, CHARLES B. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Detroit,in the county ofVayne and State of Michi-V gan, have invented new and useful Improvements in Carpet-Sweepers, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to that class of carpet-sweepers in which a brush arranged within a casing is caused to revolve by the friction of rolls upon the door, the brush serving to convey the sweepings into pans or receptacles which are capable of being tilted or partially revolved for discharging the contents thereof.

The invention consists in a novel construction and combination ot' parts, which will be fully hereinafter described in detail, and speeitically pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure lis a cross-sectional view, showing the arrangement of the dustpans and means for supporting the same.' Fig. 2 is apartition end view ot' the sweeper-casing, showing the means for adjustably supporting the brush and the relative arrangement of the oor or driving wheels. Fig. 3 is a detail view, showing the pivoted spring-pressed frame or lever for supporting the floor-roller. Fig. 4 is a plan or top view of the sweeper-Casin g, showing the means for attaching the handle thereto and the form of the spring acting upon the levers ot' the dust-pans. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view, showing the brush tted at both ends in springpressed arms or hangers. Figs. 6, 7, and S are detail views of the means employed for hoiding the propelling-handle in an erect position. Fig. 9 is a detail view of the attachable friction-wheel of the brush.

The box or casingA of the sweeper is preferably made of wood, and is of any desired form and size. It contains the cylindrical or roller-shaped brush B, which is journaled in vertical arms or hangers C, arranged at either end of the brush-casing. Instead of providing the brush with a wooden friction wheel or collar permanently attached thereto or formed thereon, I propose to use an attachable and detachable friction-wheel, D, which turns on or with an axis-pin, a, projecting from one of the brush-supporting arms C. This wheel D is generally made of cast-iron, and has a square socket, b, in the center of its inner face, which receives a square projection or boss, c, formed on a cap-plate, d, of the brush-roller. A concave depression of the boss or projection o The brush-roller provided with a square or polygonal projection entering a corresponding recess in the friction-wheel is a simple and convenient way of connecting these parts in a detachable manner; but obviously the projection can be formed on the friction-wheel and enter a recess in the end cap of the brush-roller. I can also make use of' any other form ot' clutchconnection which will permit the brush to be removed from the friction-wheelA when it is found necessary to clean the same of shreds or other adhering objects.

To provide for the convenient removal of the brush, and to retain it securely in its bearings when in position, one of the hangers or arms C is arranged to yield laterally, and between such hanger or arm and the end Wall ot' the casingis arranged a suitable spring, a', which tends to press the hanger onto the pivot of the brush-shaft, and thus prevent the accidental displacement of the brush-shaft; but when the hanger is pressed laterally away from the end of the brush-shaft the pivot of the latter is released andthe brush can be removed, leaving the friction-wheel D in its bearing in the other hanger or arm C.

By making the friction-wheel separate from the brush it can be constructed of metal or other hard material not easily worn 0E, thus insuring its proper frictional contact with the doorrollers or driving-wheels E. These rollers or wheels are arranged on either side of the friction-wheel of the brush, and are -journaled or mounted in levers or hanger-frames F, which are pivoted at their upper ends, as shown at e, to a partition-board, j', of the, sweeper-casing, or to the side board thereof.

The door-rollers E are pressed against the friction-wheel of the brush by the action of the two-arm springs G, which are coiled around the pivots that suspend theroller-frames, as is shown in Figs. 2 and 3. It will be seenthat one arm, g, of the spring presses against the roller-frame and the other arm, g', bears against a stud, g2, on the partition f. The two-arm springs serve to hold the drivin grollers against the friction-wheel of the brush in a simple and IOC effective manner, so as to insure the rotation of the brush when the sweeper is moved along the floor.

The hangers or arms C for adjustably supporting the brush are each provided with a horizontal top ange or extension, through which pass setscrews H, which project through the top of the sweeper-casing and terminate in thumb-nuts or heads. Spiral springs I, encir cling the set-screws between the anges of the supporting-arms and the sweeper-casing, exert a yielding pressure upon said supporting-arms, and thus serve to hold the brush in proper contact with the floor. These springs will permit the brush to rise and fall, so 'as to adapt itself to inequalities of the floor, the limit of vertical movement being detned by theposition of the set-screws.

The dust or sweepings collected by the brush are thrown or delivered into pans or receptacles J, located oneither side thereot' and eX- tending the entire length thereof. These pans are made open at the side opposite the brush, and are pivoted to the end wall and partitionboard of the sweeper-casing at a point in advance of the middle thereof, as is shown at m. The'pans or receptacles, pivoted or fulcrumed in this manner, are connected with vertical levers or arms K, which project through the top 0f the sweeper-casing and terminatein handles or finger-pieces K. Said levers are pivoted to the end wall of the sweeper-casing by means of screws or studs u, and their lower ends are provided with elongated vertical slots L, which receive gud geons or pins o, projecting from the dust-pans.

A spring, M, is secured to the under side ot' the top of the casing, between the levers K, and is provided with two arms, p, which bear against said levers and serve to exert a suticient pressure thereon for holding` the dustpans or receptacles in a horizontal position, or in proper relation to the brush for receiving the sweepings collected by the same.

By pressing the levers ot' the dust-pans toward each other they are caused to oscillate, and by reason of the slot-and-pin connection with the pans the latter are dumped or partly rotated to cause the contents thereof` to be discharged. The discharge takes place at the sides of the pans adjoining thes'ide walls of the sweeper-casing. As soon as pressure on the levers is released the spring bearing thereon will return the same and the pans into proper position-for sweeping.

The handle R, for propelling the sweeper along the floor, has a yoke or bail, S, the ends of which turn in sockets of'a plate or block, T, secured to the top ot the casing. The bail is secured to the handle by means of a screwshank, u, projecting therefrom, and is also constructed with a central projection or rib, U. The plate or block T is recessed and contains a sliding block or plunger, V, which has a notch in its upper end for receiving the projection of the bail when the handleis turned into a vertical position. Said block or plunger rests upon a plate or other spring, W, which is located at the bottom of the recess in the plate T, and serves to hold the plunger in firm contact with the bail for maintaining the handle in a vertical position when the sweeper is not in use.

What I claim isl. In a carpet-sweeper, the conibinatiomwith a vertically adjustable and yielding hanger, C, of a friction-wheel, D, journaled at the lower end of the hanger and dotachably connected with one end ot' the brush-shaft, substantially as described.

2. In acarpet-sweeper, the combination,\vith the hanger G, the set-screw connected therewith, and the spring I, of the friction-wheel D, journaled at the lower end ot' the hanger and provided with a socket, in which one end ot' the brush-shaft is removably arranged, substan tially as described.

3. In a carpet-sweeper, the laterally-yield ing hanger G, supporting one end ot' the brushshaft, in combination with the friction-roller D, journaled in the lower end of the opposite hanger C, and detachabljr connected with the brush-shaft and the laterally-yielding rollers E, rotating the roller D by frictional contact, all substantially as herein shown and described.

4i. In a carpet-sweeper, the combination of a handle-bail havin gaprojection, and the sprin gpressed plunger or block, with the propellinghandle and the top of the sweeper-casing, as and for the purposeA set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence ot' two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES B. CLARK.

Vitnesses:

E. J. CLARK, J. M. WELCH.

IOO 

